


Rise of the King

by Winsomenotions



Series: Rise of the King [1]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Arthur - Freeform, Arthurian, Future Fic, Gen, Magic, Merlin - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-18
Updated: 2013-01-27
Packaged: 2017-11-25 23:25:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/644058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winsomenotions/pseuds/Winsomenotions
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin of the distant future finally finds Arthur, but the world is much different now. With a new age come new enemies and danger is coming.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

I have found him. After centuries, millennia, of searching and honing my magic, I know where he is. It was painful to face him again after what happened the last time, painful to guard from the shadows once again. Even when I greeted him, his gaze slid over me blankly, for in his new life he had no memory of me. I had always feared that it would be this way but to have it be reality was almost unbearable. 

He was much the same now as he was then when I first met him. He was arrogant, rude, and superior. Of those things there was no doubt. But he was still just as brave, skilled, and compassionate, however much those things were concealed. When I saw him for the first time, I knew without any hesitation that he was the one I was searching for. I had finally found him. 

He looked the same too, not that anyone alive now would recognize him for who he used to be. He had the same messily cropped dark blond hair, the same pointed nose, and the same sharp jaw. In fact, he was identical to the man I knew all those years ago in the past. He was strong as well, due to his many years of training and competing. Seeing him was so difficult when I could not speak to him the way I had then, when I knew him and he did not know me.

And over those many nights and days of watching and guiding I grew weary. But I still knew I had to stay by him because it was my destiny, it was my fate. So I did. All these years I stayed hidden, growing my strength and wisdom, preparing for the future.

Sometimes I was my first self, Merlin. During those days I lived as a young man, pale, thin, and tall with short chocolate brown hair and icy blue eyes. I was energetic and youthful, untouched by my old age. As Merlin, I flitted through the city unnoticed training my magic, keeping an eye on him as I explored the realm of my powers. I remembered the times I had shared with him more vividly then, our friendship, our journeys, and his miserable end. But I soldiered on, trying as best as I could to be close to him and to regain his trust.

Other times I was Emrys, my true self, a wizened old man flooded with many more times the magic and knowledge of Merlin. I looked the traditional wizard during those times, with a long white beard and similar hair. Wrinkles lined my weathered face and my eyes drooped with age. However, in either form, my soul was still the same: that of a sorcerer, powerful and immortal.

But as Emrys I was more somber, my burden had worn me down. I had lost many people over the ages and times had changed me, like it does all things. Eras of joy, or sorrow, of anger, all had passed, and I had born witness to them all. The world was a new place now, no longer the simple and wild one of the Old Days. 

But no matter who I was, I knew my purpose and I did not stray. I would not let this tale end the way it had on that fateful day do long ago. Not this time. Magic was now scarce and disbelieved by the masses, only truly known by a few. Dragons were long gone as were the kings of yore. Though old dangers were gone, new perils lay ahead -- just as deadly as any enemy we had faced in times past.

So I waited. I knew what was at stake, and I bided my time. I could not wander, for the peace of the days to come was at risk. The future of mankind was in the balance, but he could not fathom his role in its survival and posterity. So for now it was my job to make sure i stayed by him until he did. And I knew the tension was growing. I could feel a great battle dawning, crawling along slowly to meet its victims.

It would be difficult, it would be dangerous. I did not know if we would succeed. But I had to try. It was my duty. I owed it to the people of my past; the people of Camelot. But most of all I owe it to him: the once and future king.


	2. Merlin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Merlin has to deal with Arthur the way he is in his new life.

I was late to class. How an ancient sorcerer gets late to class is beyond me. But no matter how long I'd been alive I couldn't seem to grasp the concept of being on time. It was something I really should have learned, considering how many years I had overslept and missed something important. Cursing, I grabbed my tablet and ran out of my room into the elevator. As it began its descent from my room on the 173rd floor to the lobby, I made a mental checklist of what I would need for the day. Tablet, check. ID, check. Dress code regulation uniform, check. 

Looking out of the glass panes of the elevator, I let my eyes wander across the cityscape. Surrounding me, in all its splendor was Nelynda. Giant skyscrapers reached for the clouds, lining up along the horizon like an artificial mountain range. Below, the cars sped along the busy streets, some dipping into underground tunnels, others taking off into the air in orderly lines. The sky draped over the city, the same dull gray color it always was. In a big city like this, clears skies were nonexistent. The only blue to be seen in the air was shiny cars flying their daily commute to work. The world had changed so much from when I was young, it was almost unfathomable.

Shaking my head, I refocused on the day ahead of me. 

"Ipseth Valdaeum," I whispered under my breath. My eyes flashed golden and my vision flew through the crowded city until if focused on Aden, rushing out of his home in disarray. He was clearly late as well, no surprise there. Seeing that all was well for now I let my thoughts come back to myself. My tablet flashed urgently --10 minutes until bell-- and I made my way out of my apartment complex. I stepped close to the edge of the street and searched until, with a grin of triumph, I saw my bus at a halt a few yards away from me. I sprinted towards it and climbed on in the nick of time, nearly falling over as the bus lurched forward. Quickly, I sat down and pulled out my tablet, desperately hoping I still had enough time to finish my homework I had procrastinated working on last night.

One of my greatest disappointments in life was that even as one of the most powerful sorcerers of all time I could not use magic to do my homework. Sure, I could write without actually touching the keys on my tablet, but I couldn't conjure a report out of thin air. It just took too much thought for a spell to do. School was such a bore, I wished Aden would have graduated already so I could be over with it.

After 5 minutes of me furiously punching numbers into my tablet, the bus stopped again, like it did every day, and the next load of students trudged on. Aden and his friends were amongst these students, bunched together and laughing loudly. A smaller boy walked in front of his group, with his head down, rushing to the back of the bus. 

"Yeah," Aden yelled, "Run away. And ask your mom to pack a better lunch next time!" His friends double over in oafish amusement. I had no idea why, as that insult had sucked. Aden had a tendency to try to show off in front of his friends in order to seem as big and tough as possible. 

"Really, Aden?" I called out," You can't come up with anything better than that?"

Aden sighed, clenched his jaw, and turned to me. His minions silenced instantly.

"Merlin. I don't think I was talking to you," he growled.

"Wow, were you thinking? That's a first for you. Come up and give me a high five!" I smiled at him.

"Oh, I'll come over there." He glared at me and stomped over to where I was sitting. He reached out his fist and swung it towards me. I jerked back barely escaping his hand and mumbled a spell under my breath. At my command, Aden's foot slid out from underneath him, and he stumbled, falling flat on his face. The punch that had been geared towards my face glanced off of my knee. To my delight the previously silent bus burst into muffled giggles. 

"Aw, come on, don't leave me hanging!" I taunted. Aden tried to scramble back to his feet with a viscous look in his eyes but for some reason, his foot remained firmly stuck under the leg of a bus seat . I'll let you guess the reason.

God, if I hadn't known Aden once before, I would have despised him. To be fair, he was and had always been somewhat of a douche, but in the end he always did what was right. Or at least, he used to. This time around he was even worse than when I had first known him all those years ago. And it was my job to lead him down the path of, well, not being a giant prick.

When the bus stopped for the final time, Aden was still struggling with his leg, trying to yank it out from under the seat that held it in its grasp. The bus doors slid open and kids hastily unloaded, gingerly stepping over Aden as they passed him. His friends shot him apologetic glances as they left, but leave they did and soon the entire buts was empty except for Aden and me. 

"Need some help?" I asked, extending my hand out to him. He scowled at me in response and tugged at his shoe. "Come on, we don't want to be here forever," I added.

"Get lost," he spat. I sighed and crouched down next to him. I turned so he couldn't see my eyes, grabbed his leg, and summoned my magic. Then I gave his leg a gentle tug and out it came. I smiled at Aden.

"There, that wasn't so hard, was it?" I said. I sidestepped him and limped off the bus, basking in my small victory.

I walked to the massive school building, and reaching the door, I pulled out my ID. Though most students had their ID information on chip in their wrist, I refused to have a potential tracking device embedded under my skin. You don't live for 2500 years without learning a few things. So with a lot of complaining and a bit of magic, I persuaded the school board to let me use a tangible ID card instead.

The scanner beeped, confirming my identity, and the doors whooshed open. I stepped into the halls, brightly lit and swarming with people. Even after coming to my school, Bexthelda School for Advanced Education, for several months, I was still in awe of the structure. It was filled with the newest and best technology: electronic teachers, 60 inch holographic touch screens, giant microscopes, HD security cameras-- the list went on. Everything was so expensive and impressive, it was hard to believe it was even real.

My school was only for the most upper class students in the city. It was filled with the sons and daughters of leading politicians, actors, corporation owners, musicians, and any other wealthy, respected individual you can think of. 

Aden, for example, was the governor's nephew. Since the governor first in charge of the sprawling empire of Incytha, which covered the majority of Europe, had no sons, Aden was eligible to become his successor. Incytha, however, was in a decade long war with its neighboring country, Asiete. Tens of thousands of soldiers were dying each year in battle and it was only getting worse. The governor took most of the blame for the fatalities in this bloody war and because of this he was losing favor. A minority in Incytha, people against the violence and death, were trying desperately to end the governor and his family's rule, by any means possible. That included assassination. Every day may have brought an end to Aden. It was scary.

But Aden was still being groomed to be the future governor. He faced pressure everyday to improve and man up, to become someone his family thought worthy of leadership. The governor himself had taken favor to Aden, but that wasn't necessarily good. The governor was a harsh man, even cruel at times. The war had taken its toll on him, and to ease his fears of spies and loss of power, he sometimes made unjust and wrong decisions. But he saw himself in Aden and pushed his ideas and paranoia on the young man. Anything Aden did was scrutinized by the governor, who would then decide if it was or wasn't right. That was Aden's life now. He spent every day in fear of the governor's wrath and did everything he could to please him, to seem good enough and tough enough. I was worried, to be honest, what would happen to Aden if he didn't escape the governor soon enough. I didn't want to know. 

But I knew Aden was meant to be governor. As it was my destiny to protect, it was his to lead. I had seen it before and I would see it once again. I could only hope that he would lead as he used to, with righteousness at heart. He had to become that ruler, for the sake of Incytha. For the sake of everyone.

The piercing sound of the bell shocked me back to reality, to my desk in classroom A32. Class had begun. I ran my hand through my hair and pulled out my tablet. It whirred instantly to life and a list of my day's assignments and lessons popped up. I grumbled as I began to click through them, planning out my schedule for the day. My class partner slumped down in his seat next to me and glared at me.

"Hey again," I greeted Aden.

"Hello," he replied frostily, gazing at me with thinly veiled contempt. I was trying to get Aden to trust me, but evidently, that wasn't going very well. In the time that I had started working with him, we hadn't gotten along much. Truthfully, we hadn't gotten along at all. But I couldn't just let him get away with anything. I knew what a true leader was like, and the boy in front of me wasn't one. Not yet, at least.

As I began explaining our day's assignments, Z walked up to our desk. At that moment I knew any hope of working had been derailed. Aden became instantly captivated by the girl. God, he was besotted with her.

Not that I could blame him. Z was gorgeous. She had long wavy black hair that hung down to her waist in a graceful cascade. The round chocolate brown eyes that peeked out from behind her thick, lashes sparkled with enthusiasm. Her skin was the color of caramel, and its suited her perfectly, drawing attention to her dark, sculpted lips. She was petite reaching only about to Aden's shoulder.

"Hey Merlin!," she beamed. Did I mention the best part about her? No matter how much Aden ran after her, she didn't seem to fawn over him like most other girls did. Which is not to say she was mean to him, because she definitely wasn't. I don't think Z was capable of contempt. "And Aden," she added.

"Hey," he stammered, "How's it going? You look nice today." 

"Thanks," she said, tucking her hair behind her ear. After several gentle rejections, Aden was a nervous wreck around Z. Bust still trying to gain her favor, he was never anything but a perfect angel around her; he knew how much had seen on the bus that morning. 

"My partner isn't here today, do you mind if I work with you guys?" 

"No problem," I answered as Aden stared dumbfounded at her. "Pull up a chair." And so we began our day of tedious class work.


	3. Merlin

The rest of the school day was entirely uneventful. Aden, Z, and I worked through our assignments, ate lunch, and went home. God, was I glad that school was finally over, it was awful. I came home after a boring bus ride and collapsed on my couch, completely exhausted. But I knew this moment of peace would not last long. I had to go find Aden. He lived in the apartment complex 2 buildings down from mine. The room I lived in was as close to his living quarters as I could get considering on what short notice I had to find a place to stay in this crowded city.  
Today... what was Aden doing today? Nearly every afternoon of his was taken up with some sort of activity, whether it be wrestling, gun competitions, martial arts, or almost anything else his family thought he needed to learn to become future ruler of Incytha. This lead to me having to watch or participate in all sorts of physical activities I loathed. Though I was great with magic, I wasn't very strong physically, the exact opposite of Aden. But really, what was the use of muscles if I could destroy my attacker with just a word?  
After some concentration I realized today was Aden's day for combat training. Which meant, today was my day for combat training. I groaned and buried my head in a pillow. Going thorough intense workout routines was not how I wanted to spend my Friday. But I had to stay close to Aden and keep him safe. Too many times had I already had to ward off a spy or assassin. It wasn't fun. I always had to be alert and ready for anything, from a gun wielding psycho hiding in an alley, to a planted recording device. Some people were determined to end the governor's bloodline, to make a statement no matter what the cost. Aden's younger brother had already been injured in an attack and one of his cousins was poisoned and now lay rotting in a casket. I couldn't trust regular security to keep Aden protected, I knew it was my job.  
Reluctantly I got up and headed to my bedroom to change into something more suitable for training. My school uniform would definitely not do the job although it was bullet proof, as was the majority clothing today. It was stiff, a pressed white polo, plastic like belt, uncomfortable too thick dress pants, and odd shoes made of a material that never scuffed or wore but only at the price of any semblance of comfort. I affectionately considered then the shoes of the devil. But none of it would hold up against the work I was headed out to do. I pulled off my school clothes and instead chose some basketball shorts and a long sleeved shirt to wear. Then I slid on some sneakers and walked out the door.  
I reached the lobby and went outside and the frosty air greeted me in a flurry of wind. It was cold now, but a few minutes into my workout I would be thankful of the thin clothes I had on. I muttered a spell to show me where Aden was. He was behind me at the moment, so I stepped to the side of my building to wait for him. Once he had walked a bit past me with his secret security guard right next to him, I began walking again making sure not to get too close as to catch his attention. It sounds creepy, I know, but I had to keep an eye out on him. He was important.  
We reached the sports complex where the classes took place after a few minutes, with me arriving a while later than Aden. By the time I got there the class had almost begun. Our trainer, a former military sergeant, glared at me as I entered the room.  
"Merlin," he said gravely," It seems you're almost late." He hated tardiness and he hated me. That didn't exactly make his class any better.  
"Well I'm not, am I? I'm not late?"  
"No," he replied.  
"Alright then, let’s get on with this class!" I retorted.  
"Okay, why don't you come up to the front of the class and show us 50 pushups to get us started?" I knew I shouldn't have talked back to the sergeant. It never got me anywhere good. Slowly, I walked up to the class and began my punishment. There was no way I could do 50 pushups. As I struggled pathetically, Aden and the sergeant smiled. They were both enjoying this a bit too much for my taste. By the time I had reached 30, my pace had considerably decreased. By 40 I was barely moving and was holding in my urge to either vomit or collapse on the floor in a crying heap.  
As I was about to give up the door clattered open and in walked Z. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun and she had donned a t-shirt and pair of sweats in favor of the school issued skirt she had had on earlier that day.   
"Oh god, I am so sorry I'm late!," she said, "I just had to make sure all of the students got back home. It was really hectic today, even your daughter seemed a bit lost." Z was a member of a volunteer group that helped the youngest students of Bexthelda, of about 5 years of age, get back to their homes after school was out. Normally, the sergeant wouldn't excuse lateness no matter the reason, but it all changed when his daughter was involved. He waved away her lateness with a smile and Z joined the class. Luckily, her entrance proved enough distraction to make the sergeant forget about my mandated pushups and start the warm up for the day. I hurriedly scuttled to the back of the classroom before he noticed.  
So we exercised. I cannot say that I did very well. In fact, I may just have been the worst student in the class. After about 2 hours of that specific torture, the sergeant decided to change it up.  
"All right!," he barked, "Pick your partners for hand to hand combat practice!" I sighed. I could not throw a strong enough punch to hold up against the toned and practiced group in this room. All I could hope for was an easy going partner and a good enough strategy to spare me some pain. Aden knew that too which is why he came up to me and put his arm around my shoulder.   
"How about," he said, "we do this one together?" Any time Aden had the chance to beat me up without punishment, he took it. But since everyone else was already partnered up, I had no choice.   
"GO!" yelled the sergeant and the room flew into a whirl of fists and legs lashing out at incredible speeds. I marveled at the grace and brutality of the scene. But sadly, my moment of awe was a moment of opportunity for Aden. When I turned back to him it was almost ot late for me to avoid his onslaught. I flinched back with but a second to spare and his arm flew over my head. His recovery was quick. He swung his leg out behind me and I toppled to the floor. An instant later he had my arm twisted tightly behind my back. In response, I turned on my side and kicked his leg with enough force for it to fall out from under him. He released me and I then viciously shoved my elbow into his back. I tried to get him into a headlock, but from that point on it only went downhill for me. In a series of intricate moves Aden threw me off of his back, flipped me over, grabbed my arms, and pinned me down to the floor with his knee. I had lost.  
Once everyone else in the room was done, we started another round of combat. Then another. Then another. By the 6th round not only was my body bruised and sore, so was my ego. Once again the sergeant signaled to begin. But I vowed that this match would go differently. Aden reached out for me, not expecting much of a challenge after how these last few rounds had gone. I ducked down and rolled a few feet to my left, willing my magic to aid me. I know it was "technically" cheating to use my powers, but I had to teach Aden lesson. My eyes turned golden and Aden's legs slid uncontrollably, causing him to fall face forward onto the floor. He turned onto his back to deliver a return blow, but with the help of my magic his soreness suddenly set in and his adrenaline faded. His arm slowed. Taking advantage of his moment of weakness, I pulled him into a halfway seated position on forced him into a move we had been taught would prevent the victim from escaping. He slumped over and I smiled. One point for me. 

Two hours later we were both drenched in sweat and frustrated. The evening had continued on in much the same pattern as our first few fights had, with Aden winning most often and me succeeding when I could sneak magic into the fight unnoticed. The movements of everyone in the room had become visibly more sluggish and weak as the night had progressed and by now almost all of us were on the floor, struggling for breath. The sergeant finally took mercy on us and dismissed the class.   
After we had showered and changed, I heard Aden's voice from behind me.  
"Hey," he said grudgingly, "You were a tough opponent. Good match."  
"Same to you," I replied, shaking his hand. Already, blue patches were showing up where we had bruised each other, including a spot that covered a good part of his upper arm that I had managed to inflict. This was going to hurt tomorrow. Together, we headed out of the building into the dark cold air.   
We spent the way home in silence and when I reached my apartment, we nodded goodbye. Then he walked away.


	4. Emrys

After my farewell with Aden I returned to my own home, but alas, my stay was not long. I aged swiftly into Emrys and into the city I strode, shouldering my burden of protecting my leader as an ancient withered man, letting my young self become just a memory for the time being. But although my body was wrinkled and stooped, I felt physically neither old nor young, merely ageless, as though the millennia I had lived through had overlooked me and Father Time had not done to me what he does to all others who tread this earth. My gaze followed the path ahead of me until my eyes came to rest on Aden in the distance, having a chat with his bodyguard as he made his way home.

The night was damp and murky, the most miserable combination possible and I grumbled under my breath at the universe and how it seemed to enjoy thwarting my contentment. Darkness was creeping into the city slowly, slipping through alleys and gutters and into the flashing billboards and houses that scattered light no matter the time of day. Cars still flooded the roads, a modern day river filled with honking and headlights. I missed the peace of the Old Days, where even in the biggest citadels, you could find a corner untouched by noise. Now the damned stuff hid in every nook and cranny-- like cobwebs, only louder. Couldn't I find any peace? I would far too often find myself ready to bring down my destructive powers on Nelynda and have a bit of quiet for once. But perhaps that was just the old man in me talking; Merlin turgled the marvels of the city and the changing that came with each new century.

As I continued down the path I let my senses wander through the streets. I listened to each whisper and scrutinized each face, hunting for the slightest sign of danger. In the end, paranoia often was worth the constant fear it brought. It was worth protecting the King. But I resented this meticulous distress no matter how valuable it was. My days were spent in worry of the fate of a lone man.

I should tell you then, how it had come to be like this. How I had seen Aden and known that although he remembered neither me nor Camelot, it was he whom I was searching for. Some of the legend you must know. The tales of King Arthur. The stories that have enraptured the minds of the people for millennia, a seething mass of myth, prophecy, and history. They have haunted me my entire life, from the moment I was born and my fate intertwined with that of Arthur. Since the time of his death I waited for him to come back, for me to come upon him one day and to see him become the noble leader he had been when I had left him. But our reunion was bittersweet when I came upon him in the metropolis of Nelynda.

I saw him there one day, in the city that had grown from the ruins of Camelot. He sat stiffly by the side of the governor, listening as the older man's words burned into the minds of his audience, preaching anger, pride, and fear. Funny how those so often go hand in hand. I could see him struggling to make sense of the governor’s words, to understand and consume the passion behind his message.

And I could see him failing. It is not the way of a true leader to condemn without hesitation, convict someone for purely being who they are. But the governor did not see this doubt in Aden's mind, his curiosity about the other side of the story. He saw only a future to his campaign and his rule, even after he had passed from the mortal world. He saw the continuation of his war on Asiete, a war that had started at the hands of a few extremists but had blossomed into a hideous war that was etched into the minds and psyches of the people. An us VS them, good VS evil war that had been stretched out and intensified by a ruler who knew not what to do but gather the patriotism of his people and use it to fuel violence. It was another great purge. But this time it was worse.

This boy that sat next to him, at the age of ten, was his clay. And to mold him into his heir, the governor needed fear. He made the boy fear. Whether it was the citizens of Nelynda, the judgment of the people, or the governor himself did not matter. Fear bred the type of man he wanted. But it did not breed the type the Incytha needed.

However, I saw this defiance, though hidden it was, in the eyes of Aden and I knew he was Arthur again. That my years and years and years of waiting had finally come to an end. Now that he was here I need to help him. Oh, he would need help. Already the fear was being woven into him, strand by strand, as he everyday donned his bulletproof clothing and went to school with his guards. This fear I had to get out of him. I had to beat it out of his skull and destroy it, because it would not make a leader. It never has and it never will. It makes a monster who judges harshly and leads with a false sense of safety in mind, because his fear has driven his logic out of him.

But Aden could not be this man, this monster. He had to be brave, honest, and noble; he had to face this ignorant fear that had been born into him. But he would need me for that, because on his own he was powerless against this overwhelming force. The city was painted with it, the people wore it, the restaurants served it. It was everywhere he turned. But it could not go on much longer like this. People were dying at war. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers, propelled by their nationalism and chained by their blindness fought a people who were the same as them just because they were afraid. But their enemies were just as afraid. Soon too many would die and both countries would be left ravaged.

This war had brought Aden into danger as well, under fire by people who wanted to end violence with violence and foreigners who wanted to defend their country. The future was in danger, teetering on the edge of a cliff looming over disaster. If everything stayed as it was the end was near. But Aden could not let this happen and neither could I. In order to rescue the future I had to keep him safe and teach him to become the man he could not remember, and the man I missed: a King.

And that is how I came to this. This creeping, this hiding, this careful distrust. But until now I had done my job. Aden was alive and still skeptical. As long as he had his doubt he could change. So I clung onto that hope and I prayed that it would be enough to save a nation and to bring back peace. And if I had to spend my days guarding Aden in order for him to evolve, I would. I had no other choice.

I blinked rapidly to clear my head and focused once again on my search. My eyes glowed golden as they sorted through the teeming city. They drifted over insignificant faces, one after another, searching alleys, stairwells, and cars. As I came to the end of my search my eyes alighted on Z. What was she doing in this part of the city? After our workout I had assumed she'd gone home, as most of us had, with sore muscles and bruised bodies. But here she was strutting through the city and 10 at night alone. She was clad in black tights and a t shirt with her hair tied up and a pair of large sunglasses resting on her nose. I should not have suspected her, I had no reason to. But something was not right.

It was not just her dark attire, her whole demeanor was odd. She held close to the walls furthest from the street and the darkness that they offered seemed to cling to her, enveloping her in a shadow that trailed behind her then rejoined the rest of the gloom. An aura emanated from her that was completely unlike her. It wasn't quite black or malicious but it was overconfident. It was smug, cocky, mischievous. It did not make sense, the way she made her way along the street in this fashion, a wicked smile across her face. She had done something. What it was I didn't know and I couldn't find out now, but it was not good. Up until now she had been nothing but perfect but that didn't give me enough reason to disregard my growing unease. I had to trust my instincts, those of a sorcerer are especially strong and mine were warning me. I had to pursue this suspicion before I came to regret it.

I let Aden out of my thoughts, sure that his guards would be enough to get him through the night. He didn't get attacked every day, only once every few months someone would attempt to sink a bullet through his heart or steal classified information from him. I didn't think this night would be one of them. Instead I focused my energy on Z. I began to speed up in earnest, for I was far behind her and I needed to get closer. I had to discover what her next step was. After some time of hasty walking I was within eye range of Z. I was not too worried about her noticing me for even if she turned around and saw me she would not recognize me as Emrys, it was Merlin she knew. We walked for a few minutes and I realized she was headed home.

And I realized that although I knew not what Z was planning I had some idea of what I must do. I had to go to her home and find out her true intentions. I needed to know who she really was and if she was dangerous. I could not yet know if she was with certainty but I had a feeling I would unearth the truth soon enough. Z was going home but as of now that was not where I needed her to be. She had to be far away from her apartment so I could scour it alone. I wanted to -- needed to-- know what was going on. I fiercely wished that my gut was wrong, that Z was as innocent as ever and I was purely being overcautious. But whether or not that dream would prove true all depended on what I found in my investigation. In order to proceed on with my search, however, Z had to be anywhere but her rooms. I had to send her away. I intended to find the truth undisturbed, I merely needed to find a way how.

Simple enough, I mused. Conjuring my power, I placed a thought in Z's mind.

Something is wrong, my whisper disguised as her own told her. She hesitated in her relentless pace for a moment and shrugged the worry away uneasily. But it persisted, home is not safe. Not now. Bide your time and return. Danger is near.  
I could see her then, as the magic warped her thoughts, reasoning with herself. It seemed her instincts were keeping her from her home. Perhaps she was considering that there might be a guard near it. Or that enemy was hidden in her home. Or that on her journey back to her apartment she would somehow come to harm. But the specific thought did not matter. I could see her discomfort rising, her doubts growing and gnawing at her confidence. Her breathing quickened. Her heart raced. Her hands trembled. My influence was strong and she was beginning to crumble under it. Creeping into her mind was a fright, and in the end it drove her away. Twisting her head around she searched for a threat she knew was there. But seeing none, yet fearing many, she crossed her arms and sped into the bowels of the city, to bathe in the comforting light that it emanated and to hide amongst the company of late night shoppers and workers.

With that I began to trek to few remaining blocks to her home. The cold night bit at my skin as I padded through the emptying streets of the night. After handful of minutes I saw Z's apartment complex nearing. In an instant I was at the building's door, which swung open easily under my hands. The lobby was blessedly free of people, no doubt most of the students that dwelt in these halls were curled up in their beds watching a movie on their full wall TVs or finishing a last minute project. I entered the elevator and flitted up to the 48th floor in a matter of seconds. I saw Z's cool steel door, a pale unassuming blue, and I placed my hand gently on its ID scanner. Then, flashing my eyes, I threw it open and marched in.


	5. Emrys

The inside of Z’s apartment was entirely inconspicuous, exactly how I would have imagined it before tonight. It was a typical girl apartment. The living room was dark in her absence, the holographic television powered down and silent, no more than a small cube resting on a reflective chest. The walls were a soothing lavender, the same shade as the pillows on her ivory leather couches. The floors were tile as were the walls of the cramped kitchen and they were cold to the touch from the steady blow of the air conditioner.   
Nothing seemed off except for the feeling of it. It seemed hollow and empty, a house but not a home. It was wrong. I had to find out why. The apartment was empty, but although there was not much to search I knew that finding what I needed would not be an easy task.   
I flicked on the lights and sorted through everything, cautiously at first and then more recklessly as time ticked by with no result. If not for what I had seen earlier I would have had no reason to doubt Z at all based on my findings, which were nothing. So far the hunt had done nothing but add to my confusion.   
Eventually I came to her bedroom, the most unimpressive room of the apartment. It was comprised of nothing more than a bed, wardrobe, desk, and lamp, with tablets, phones and clothes piled about its surface. Not much for me to investigate.   
I began with the wardrobe, jerking out the top drawer, then the middle, then the bottom, but coming up with nothing more than handfuls of clothing. I continued to the bed and then the desk, with equally dismal luck from both. In a last ditch effort I scrolled through all of Z’s tablets, but no. Nothing. I growled in frustration.  
Once again I went through the entire contents of her apartment sure I had missed something. But when I was once again reached bedroom I was just as empty handed as before. I slumped at the foot of Z’s bed in defeat and buried my face in my hands. I still didn’t know any more about Z than what she had told me herself. And I knew that the girl I had seen earlier had secrets she would never divulge. The look on her face had said it all.  
I rubbed my eyes and sighed. It was getting late and I did not know how much longer my persuasion could keep Z away from her warm bed on this cold winter’s eve. I gazed blankly ahead of me watching the shadows dance across the wall. Then I noticed something. The light was odd. Where there should not have been a shadow there was. An odd rectangular shadow that did not waver. A..  
I sprang up from the ground and dashed over to the lamp. Unscrewing the warm top I peered inside and laughed. Sure enough, inside was a small device resting against the light box. I pulled it out and twisted it around in my hand, examining its construction. It was quite archaic considering how far technology had come in recent times. It was palm sized and black with a screen covering the entirety of its surface. I slid a small switch on the back and it flickered to life. A password screen flashed up, beckoning me to enter the right 6 character code.  
“Damn it,” I whispered at the gadget, “It took me long enough to find you, just give me this one.” But alas, it remained still as inanimate objects are wont to do. I groaned.   
So, with no other option available I began to think. What could her password possibly be? Her birthday? The date of her first day at Bexthelda? Her school ID number? There was no way to know. I stared unblinking at the blank field, just waiting for my hand to enter the right code. My eyes began to water as I ran through all the options, not letting my gaze off of the screen. I let my instincts guide me. I tried to remember. What things had she ever spoken of? What had she desired to know? What fascinated her? Revolted her?  
I did not want to merely guess. It would be so easy to be wrong and with a wrong password, at the least, all the information I needed would be deleted. At the most, the entire tablet would crumble in my hands. I could not risk that. I needed to be patient and wise. It was all about strategy, it always was. I paced the undersized room, my thoughts in a feverish stream, unrelenting, pounding through my head. But still I could think of nothing that I could submit without leaving a gaping canyon of room for error. Every so often I would lift my fingers and let them hover over the numbers, tempted to end this struggle and be over with it. But each time I bowed my head and dropped my fingers. I had waited longer for things in my lifetime. A few hours was nothing compared to the years I had been through.   
I glanced out of the window for a second then turned back to the tablet resting in my uncertain grasp. My heart stopped as I realized what I had seen. Slowly my eyes made their way to the window again, my brain shocked by the information they had just processed. But when I looked once again out onto the street there was no more doubt in my mind. It was Z. I had known my spell could only hold her so long and the cold night had finally driven her out of its realm and back to the comfort of her apartment. I sprang up from my crouch on the ground and threw the device back into its hiding place in the lamp, screwing the lid back on with shaking hands. The previously tidy room was now disheveled at the hands of my frantic search and my horror grew as I surveyed the mess. My magic sparked and in my mind's eye I saw Z stepping into the elevator, floors and floors below me. With my golden vision I whipped my powers about the room, restoring it as best as I could to its former state of neatness. The rest of the house would have to do as it was. 

I cast open the window just as I heard the beep of the ID scanner at the door. I leapt out of the opening and lowered myself onto a small ledge a meter below it, letting the frame come to a close behind me with a bang. From inside the home I heard a sharp intake of breath. Z was in and she knew what had happened. I peered in as she flung open her bedroom door and dashed over to the lamp. With fumbling fingers she undid the top and pulled out her secret, cradling it in her palms like a newborn child. She sat down on her bed and let out a long, tense breath. She was trembling ever so slightly as she rested on the mattress, her shoulder's quivering in rhythm with my own. Between the two of us the night had become flooded with adrenaline as it flowed from our frenzied hearts and bodies.

But now that she had her tablet safe in her own two hands she had calmed visibly and started to regain her composure. She straightened her back and swept her hand with her brow trying to control her fear. She pressed a button on her tablet and it lit up. Slowly and surely she entered the pass code with her fingers. 2-4-7-1-4-9. That was it. The answer. A wall of text filled up the screen, the letters too small for me to identify from this distance and Z tapped the screen to draw up a blank field.

Z's fingers flew across the screen, typing countless lines of words to join those already locked into the device. I tried to bring my eyesight nearer to the words but even once I had I could make no sense of them. They were in a tongue I did not know, or perhaps a secret script of some sort. But one thing was not disguised. A name. Aden. 

I watched her from my precarious seat outside, balanced above one of the world's largest cities. I was most certainly not in a comfortable position, ducked barely below the window, gripping onto its edges. I was crouched and twisted and with strained, sore muscles. I was fortunate that no one was out to witness my odd predicament however, most disturbances in Nelynda were dealt with swiftly and forcefully. 

Though I never thought I would see the day where I would call this good fortune, I mulled. I was out over the city for some time longer, observing Z as she poured her confidential information into her tablet. I began to ache, physically and mentally, as I longed to learn the meaning of Z's messages. Soon she was finished. With a final stroke across the strings of indiscernible words, the screen faded once more to an empty black. Z stretched her arms above her head and yawned, letting the day's stress seep out of her. She walked over to the lamp with heavy footsteps and returned her tablet to its home. Then she padded out of her room. I stayed frozen, unsure of my next course of action. I knew no more now of Z's purpose than before, questions were all I had earned from my search. And now that I knew how to open the information on her device I could not decode it. Furthermore I could not yet retrieve the device, only stare at it pitifully from a building ledge. 

I wanted so much to simply go back into the apartment, seize the tablet and leave again, but I did not want to be caught. I did not know yet, conclusively, if Z was innocent or not and I did not want to condemn her without utmost certainty. But if she saw me in her home, what could I do? I could not attack, but I could not flee unless I had what I required. If she knew someone was after her potentially dangerous information, who knew what she would do? It was not a risk I wanted to take. Letting my magic come back to life I saw Z curled up on her sofa with a mug of tea. My sight came back to my place outside and I sighed. I could not do this. For even if I got the device without giving off the slightest signal of my presence I would have no way out. I could not simply jump down the apartment complex, I had not yet had to test if my magic would save me from such a fall. Slipping into someone else's apartment was no more feasible, the climb over would be demanding and it would take me far too long to find an empty apartment. I needed a way to out unseen and unheard. As of now, that seemed impossible.

In an act of final desperation I once again let my magic lead my vision to Z in the living room. I could not believe my luck. She was asleep. Her tea was in front of her on the coffee table, her blankets tossed around her. I knew I still had limited time, so I opened the window as silently as possible with my magic and crept into the now dark bedroom. I made my way over to the lamp and gingerly got out the tablet. Chanting the code in my mind I tiptoed into the living room. As I walked to the front door the only sound in the room was Z's shallow breathing, filling the room with each rise and fall of her chest.

I unlocked the door with flashing eyes and stepped over the threshold.

"Stop," I heard from behind me. I turned slowly and saw Z facing me, holding a small gun in her hand. "My gun is completely silent and I will shoot you if you take another step. No one will even know it happened. Put down the tablet and step towards me." Her hands trembled as she pointed the pistol at my head. 

"Wh-" I spoke.

"Stop! Don't say anything. I don't have to listen to your explanations. You've broken into my home and stolen from me. I will kill you if you don’t do what I say." Her voice was strained, though she tried to force confidence into it.

My eyes flashed a bright golden and the door slammed shut. "Dare you threaten me, little girl?" I bellowed. "I fear you not. Your little weapon means nothing to me. You should be afraid of me!" My shadow rose, its darkness shooting across the walls. I myself seemed to grow in my heat, my figure rising to a menacing height. "I take what I need and I will not have you standing in my way. If you wish to be spared, flee from this place. FLEE!"

Z recoiled in shock, dropping the gun. She took a few uncertain steps back, her mouth hanging open and her eyes wide. Her knees gave out and she collapsed onto the floor in a graceless heap. She whimpered and let out a cry. Then she disappeared.


End file.
